


Underneath Deep Blue Seas

by hearts_of_kyber



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Eventual Smut, F/M, Romance, Scuba Diving, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-20
Updated: 2018-11-29
Packaged: 2019-06-13 06:01:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15357819
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hearts_of_kyber/pseuds/hearts_of_kyber
Summary: Title: "Submarines" by The LumineersModern AU. Rey is not looking forward to spending two and a half weeks on an island with her friend and his new boyfriend - that is, until she meets her scuba instructor.





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Before I start, I'd just like to thank a couple people for helping me out with this chapter (and more to come)!
> 
> First, Helen (@hellyjellybean on Twitter) for being a supportive beta, and Bec (@becgotnohope2 on Twitter) for teaching me all about Australia and her (somewhat rough) scuba diving experience. Love you guys!

**One Week Before...**

_“But you don’t even know this guy!” Rey exclaims, scrolling through the insanely long conversation on her best friend Finn’s phone. It mainly consists of emojis, cringeworthy ‘I love you more’ texts, and oh — she doesn’t mean to stumble across_ that _picture. “He clearly seems to like you, though.”_

_She frowns, attempting to wipe the image from her mind, and quickly closes out of the Grindr app. As she goes to hand Finn’s phone back to him, Rose snatches it out of her hand at a speed so quick Rey isn’t sure it is humanly possible._

_Finn blushes. “Oh, oops. Forgot he sent that.”_

_Rose raises her eyebrows as she studies the pictures on Poe Dameron’s profile, further investigating the situation. “He’s cute, though. Could see why you’d fall in love with him instantly.” She pauses at one of the photos, nearly squealing. “Oh my God, is that him with a dolphin? That’s the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen!”_

_There’s a slight pause before Finn continues, “Yeah, so about him wanting to make things more serious…”_

_Rey’s eyebrows perk up and she leans forward in her chair. After all the years she has known Finn, she knows too well by now that he has always been one to… rush into things. It’s a bad habit of his when it comes to relationships, and time and time again he ignores Rey’s warnings to slow things down. When those relationships inevitably crumble, it’s slightly tempting for Rey to play the ‘I-told-you-so’ card, but she doesn’t have the heart to do so when she sees him cry. Rey may not be a perfect friend but she at least has the decency to save the bitchy comments until the appropriate times._

_“Finn…” she begins, a hint of concern in her voice._

_“Well, I told you guys how he works as a scuba instructor at a beach resort in Australia…” Finn scratches the back of his neck, something Rey has noticed he often does when he is anxious. “He sort of invited me and my friends to stay out there for two and a half weeks.” He is rushing through his next words now. “Our rooms are paid for and everything, and free scuba diving lessons are included if you want to take them up.”_

_Rose is practically bouncing off the walls, completely giddy with glee. Standing up, she exclaims, “Yes! We’re going to Australia! I’ve always wanted to go, the beaches there are beautiful, and man, the accents…”_

_As she continues to mumble happily to herself, Rey crosses her arms over her chest, turning to Finn. “You've been talking to Poe for less than a month, Finn. Are you really sure about this?”_

_Finn cracks a smile, and his eyes light up at even the merest mention of his soon-to-be-boyfriend’s name. “Rey, this is the one. I know things haven’t always worked out for me in the past, but this time… I can feel it. Please, trust me on this.”_

_Although Rey can’t help but feel happy for him, she has to admit she is a little suspicious. Two free rooms at a four and a half star hotel halfway across the world with scuba diving lessons included? This really is serious, then. Or too good to be true._

_“I’m just trying to look out for you, okay?” Rey sighs. “But since I’m a supportive best friend and all, of course I’ll go with you. I want to check out if this ‘Poe’ really is a good guy or not.”_

_Finn is basically grinning from ear to ear, looking like a child who has just woken up on Christmas morning, and Rey smiles. There’s nothing else that’s worse in the world to her than when her friends are upset._

_“You’ll love him. I promise. You both will,” he insists, hugging Rey tightly. They look over to invite Rose to join them, but she is already in the kitchen of their shared apartment, calling her family and spreading the good news._

_“Yes, Paige! Australia!”_

_This is going to be one long trip._

 

 

So that’s how Rey ends up cramped into the backseat of a tiny cab just after stepping off the ferry that transported them to the island, her suitcase on her lap nearly suffocating her because apparently there “isn’t enough room” in the trunk. Now normally, Rey isn’t a cranky sort of person. But after being stuck on an airplane for over 20 hours on the flight from London to Brisbane, then on a boat, and then into yet another confined space shortly after, she isn’t too happy. This trip better be worth it.

Once they arrive at the hotel, Rey scrambles out of the car, desperate for a breath of fresh air. After hauling her luggage out (she curses at herself for deciding to bring one large suitcase, two carry-on bags and a purse), she stands back and realizes that the view around her is actually really beautiful. They are surrounded by magnificently tall, swaying palm trees and water that is so blue. Rey isn’t sure she has ever seen this much color and nature in her entire life, after having lived underneath the grey London skies for so long. It's a nice change, albeit a temporary one.

“I can’t _wait_ to take some pictures with the dolphins, just like Poe did! Do you think they feel as smooth as they look?” Rose is rambling, as she often does when she gets excited.

“Actually, I’ve heard bottlenose dolphins can sometimes get quite aggressive. They’re evil,” Rey responds with a yawn, focusing her quickly diminishing energy on rolling her suitcase towards the entrance to the lobby of the hotel. “Back me up on this one, Finn.” She shouts back at him. When she gets no response, she glances toward him worriedly. “Finn?”

He is standing a few feet back, staring at his phone screen as if he has just seen a ghost. His face is somewhat green and his eyes are wide, and Rey is convinced he may either throw up or pass out. Or both.

Both girls run towards him, asking over and over again if he’s okay.

The only words he can muster are, “He’s here.”

“What?” Rose and Rey ask in unison.

“Poe. He just texted me saying he’s waiting for us in the lobby.” He stares straight ahead of them, swallowing nervously.

Rose and Rey give each other a look.

“So that’s _good_ , right?” Rose speaks slowly.

“Good… it’s good,” Finn repeats absentmindedly, more so to convince himself of his words than to remind himself. He takes a deep breath, then shakes his head. “No, no. It’s not good. What if he hates me? What if he thinks I’m even uglier in person? I can’t do this!”

Rey grabs his wrist before he starts having a complete meltdown. “Hey. Get a grip. We literally flew all the way to Australia for this, and now you’re going to meet him and it’s going to be fine. You love each other, remember?”

After a moment of silence, Finn nods, and he breathes deeply again. “Right. You’re right.”

“Let’s go in,” Rey says reassuringly, grabbing her suitcase again as she leads the trio inside.

The glass doors slide open automatically to reveal a gorgeously decorated lobby, which reminds Rey that this is a rather high-end hotel. At the check-in counter, a quite attractive man with short brown hair wearing a tee-shirt and shorts is leaned over the desk, laughing and charming one of the ladies working behind it. Once she spots them, the lady points over, mouthing something to the man. He straightens his back and looks over to them as a wide smile creeps upon his face. It is definitely Poe.

“Finn?” He asks, approaching the group. As he moves closer his smile grows even bigger.

“My God, he’s hotter in person,” Rose says in awe, staring at Poe affectionately. In a split second, she catches herself and shakes herself out of her trance, muttering, “Oh. Um, I didn’t mean to say that out loud.”

“D’you reckon he might not be gay?” Rey asks Rose quietly, hoping she is the only one who can hear.

Seconds pass, and Poe and Finn are close now. Rey and Rose watch intently, eager to see what will happen next, standing several feet away in order to give them both some space. There is a brief awkward silence before Poe chuckles and wraps his arms around Finn, one draped over his shoulder and one around his waist, and Finn does the same.

“It’s good to finally see you,” Poe says with obvious relief, as they embrace each other tightly.

“It’s good to see you, too,” Finn finally replies, and Rey and Rose look on, beaming proudly.

The two are interrupted by the sound of a cough and a deep voice announcing, “Uh, Poe, I hate to ruin the moment, but there is a slight emergency.”

Everyone suddenly turns toward the source of the commanding voice. Rey is surprised to see a tall, large man standing behind them all, muscular arms crossed in front of his chest. Really, the best word she can think of to describe him is _large_. Which isn’t very creative, but it suits him to the ground. He’s wearing a plain grey tee that normally wouldn’t be anything special, but the fit shows off his muscles really well, and his black shorts complete the look. She tries not to stare for too long as he takes one of his huge hands and runs it through his medium-length jet black hair, which sits just above his broad shoulders. She tries not to admire how it is curled almost perfectly and looks _so_ soft. She tries not to imagine her own fingers running through it and — she _really_ needs to calm down.

Maybe she has been staring for too long because his dark brown eyes lock onto hers and she notices him quickly look her up and down. Did he just check her out? She doesn’t know how to feel about that. Excited? Offended? Maybe a little of both.

“Who are your friends?” He asks, tilting his chin toward Rey and Rose. When he does this, she can more clearly see the stubble on his chin and the slight mustache forming around his lip. He doesn’t sound particularly enthusiastic to meet them, but Rey doesn’t want to judge his entire personality based off of only two things he’s said. She’s also observed that he is American, and wonders what he and Poe are doing here, so far from home.

“Oh,” Poe says awkwardly, a hint of nervousness in his voice, but he covers it up with a laugh. Gesturing to them, he explains, “Kylo, this is Finn and his friends Rose and Rey. They’re here all the way from London. Everyone, this is my buddy Kylo.”

The three friends wave at him, but Kylo doesn’t offer them so much as a twitch of his lip into a smile.

Poe clears his throat. “You said there’s an emergency?”

“Yes,” he answers, voice growing more annoyed. “Your dog took a giant shit in my room, and he is _not_ my responsibility.”

If Kylo’s voice wasn’t as serious as it was when he said that sentence, then it might not have been as funny, but both Rey and Rose stifle their laughter.

Poe rolls his eyes. “Bee Bee is still in potty-training. You need to give him a break.”

“I refuse to give him a break as long as he’s still shitting all over my room!” Kylo shouts, glaring over at the two girls laughing at him. “It’s not funny,” he growls.

They both stop, somewhat scared at what he will do if they don’t.

“Listen man, I’m sorry,” Poe says with a sigh. “If he does it again, just ask him nicely to take a dump in my room. Maybe he’ll listen.”

Rose and Rey chuckle again as Kylo narrows his eyes, this time frowning at his friend.

The last thing he hisses to Poe before leaving the room is, “Take better care of your dog, Dameron, or he’s out.” With that, he’s walking away, carrying his sour mood with him.

Finn waits a moment before he talks. “He seems… friendly.”

Scratching his chin, Poe turns to them. “Yeah, sorry about him. Kylo’s known for having some… issues with his temper. But, anyway!” He claps his hands together, flashing an enthusiastic smile. “Welcome to Whitsunday Island. Let’s get you guys checked into your rooms.”

_What a warm welcome indeed._


	2. Chapter Two

“Now _this_ is the life,” Rose sighs happily, yanking open the blinds in her and Rey’s hotel room all the way.

Rey winces at this. “I’m tired,” she mumbles, kicking off her shoes and flopping down onto her queen-size bed. “‘M just gonna take a quick nap…”

Rose rolls her eyes. “Well, I’m ready to go out there and explore the world! Finn, are you with me?”

The door connecting to the joint room flies open, and Finn’s face peeks out. “What?”

Grabbing his hand and pulling him out of the room, Rose giggles. “C’mon, we’re only here once! Let’s go meet some people.”

“But I –”

She doesn’t give him the chance to finish as the door slams behind them, and Rey exhales a sigh of relief.

 

 

“REY.”

It is the third time Rose has called out her name, and this time she finally wakes up.

“What? What? I’m up,” Rey mutters groggily, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. Her hair is a mess, with strands sticking out at odd angles, but she doesn’t bother to fix it.

“You’re going to be late,” Rose explains, pacing around the room while getting herself ready.

“Late? For what? It’s four o’clock in the afternoon.” Rey can still barely keep her eyes open.

Rose scoffs. “Actually, it’s almost eight a.m., AKA the time of your first scuba lesson!” Rey’s eyes shoot open as Rose begins to ramble on. “Wow, aren’t you so excited? I mean, getting to go in the ocean and everything, in _Australia_ of all places! This is just an amazing opportunity. Finn and I talked to Poe yesterday and –”

“Scuba lesson? But I – we just –” Rey stumbles for her words.

“Oh, you’re not going to cancel, are you?” Rose sits down on the end of her friend’s bed and frowns. “Poe was so excited to teach us, well I mean more specifically teach Finn, but he said he picked out great instructors for us, too! Oh, please come with us!”

Flopping back down onto the bed, Rey murmurs a soft yet hesitant, “Fine.”

Even though she can’t see, she is almost positive that Rose is beaming from ear to ear.

“Thank you! Okay, now get ready, we have fifteen minutes.”

 

 

The warm breeze hits Rey as soon as she walks outside, and she smiles to herself, taking it all in. The dock isn’t too far from the hotel, as they are nearly on the water, and she follows Rose, wondering to herself how she isn’t as exhausted as herself. Once they get closer, Rey can make out the shape of four people standing together. She squints her eyes, first noticing Finn and Poe talking to each other, some other woman nearby, and, _oh_ – that large man she had met before. She hopes to herself that he isn’t one of the instructors.

At this point Poe notices them and smiles widely, waving them over. Finn does the same.

“You made it!” Poe exclaims. “Now who’s ready to take a dive into the ocean?”

Him and his friends laugh at this, almost hysterically, and Rose and Rey do as well, though not too sure of what the joke was.

Once they are finished, Poe continues, “This is Jessika and, well, you met Kylo – two of the best instructors at this resort. I thought that since we usually like to keep things one-on-one, we’ll have one of you go first. How about you, Rey?”

Rey shrugs. “All right.”

“All right!” He repeats enthusiastically. “Kylo, you heard her.” Turning to the rest of the group, he adds, “We’ll let them have the dock.”

Rey is pretty sure she can hear herself internally groan. Not him, why did it have to be him? She really is not in the mood to deal with this grumpy, overly-annoyed man.

“Have fun, Rey!” Rose says, patting her on the back, and the rest of the group begins to amble away, leaving the pair alone.

It is slightly awkward for a few seconds, as Kylo rubs his arm, not sure of what to say. Eventually, he clears his throat.

“Well, first thing’s first, you need to get familiar with the equipment, obviously,” he explains in his deep, almost monotone voice, but Rey isn’t really paying attention. He turns around and squats on his knees, rummaging through a large bag that is at his feet and continuing to talk.

Growing bored, Rey decides to slip off her shirt and shorts so that she is now just in her bathing suit, kicking her sneakers to the side. Kylo is still talking, although at this point it is really only to himself, as Rey isn’t listening anymore. She walks closer to the edge of the dock and peers over, looking at the glistening blue water. Not even a second later, she jumps in, squealing with delight.

Startled by the splash, Kylo nearly falls over from where he is positioned, but catches himself. He is instantly sprayed by the water, and wipes the excess off his face, clearly irritated. He brings himself to his feet and walks over to the edge himself.

When Rey resurfaces, grinning, Kylo nearly yells, “What are you doing?”

Once she realizes that he is obviously not in a good mood, Rey looks at him with wide eyes. “Just getting in the water, like I’m supposed to?” She says it as if it is more of a question, terrified in that moment that he will actually kill her.

She can see the muscles in his arm flexing as a result of his anger, and he tenses up, but then quickly calms himself down. “You’re not _supposed_ to get into the water yet.” His voice is almost mocking.

“Well, okay, sorry,” she responds. “I thought, y’know, that’s what scuba diving is all about? Actually getting into the ocean?”

“Well, yes, _eventually_ ,” he explains. “But you can’t dive unless you know all the rules and basic facts. Hand signals, equipment, anything that can save your life? It’s more dangerous than it sounds.”

Rey swims over to the ladder, hoisting herself back onto the dock. She notices that Kylo has gone pretty much silent, and she glances up at him, only to find him staring at her. She’s not sure if he meant to on purpose, because she really isn’t much to look at, but he definitely just checked her out again. And wasn’t too subtle about it, to be honest. Self-conscious, she covers her arms in front of her chest. Why did she have to choose to wear _this_ particular bikini?

She coughs, still uncomfortable and dripping wet. “Right, um, can I get a towel or something?”

Pretending as if nothing had just happened, Kylo scrambles and zips up his bag. “Yeah, sure, a towel. I’ll get that.”

Off he goes to some kind of cabin nearby and exits only a few seconds later with a towel. Once he returns, he hands it to her, and she takes it from him quickly.

“Thanks,” she says softly, wrapping it around herself.

“Maybe next time give me a warning when you’re about to jump into the ocean before I’ve even started my lesson?” He asks, still slightly annoyed, and she rolls her eyes.

“Yeah, yeah. Maybe we can just get started on the lesson already, if you’re so great of a teacher?” If he can play this game, she can, too.

“That was the plan,” he retorts, looking back through his bag again. He can feel himself begin to smile and quickly catches himself. Pulling a mouthpiece out of the bag and showing it to Rey, he clears his throat. “So, like I was saying: equipment.”

  
  


 

“I don’t know why you made it seem so complicated, it’s really all simple,” Rey says matter-of-factly.

“All right, then go over everything I’ve just told you,” Kylo orders.

She inhales, taking a moment to remember. “Well, there’s the regulator, mask and snorkel, pressure gauge, fins, air tank, and all that –”

Kylo interrupts, “Now, I don’t need you to make a list of all the equipment, but what was the most important thing I told you?”

“Breathe continuously. Never hold your breath.”

“And how often should you check your air pressure?”

“Every five minutes.”

“And when you’re ascending –”

“Don’t ascend faster than nine meters per minute.”

“Good.” He pauses. “Well, I think that’s everything for today. That was quicker than I expected.”

Rey shrugs. “What can I say, I’m a fast learner.”

“We’ll see about that,” he responds under his breath, standing himself up.

Not sure if she heard him right, she does the same anyway with her towel still wrapped around herself. After he grabs his bag, he looks her up and down.

“Oh, and, uh, maybe put some clothes on before you head back to the hotel.” He flashes her a fake smile and with that, he leaves without her, not even bothering to turn around again to check on her. Even though she knows he can’t see her, she glares at him, shoving her clothes back on while slightly embarrassed.

  
  


 

Rey predicts that the first thing she’ll see when she enters the hotel is Rose grinning at her, and as usual, she’s right. The group of four is gathered at one of the tiki bars, drinking and laughing together.

“So, how was it?” Rose asks when she comes up to them, extremely intrigued.

“Good,” she begins. “Well, I mean, besides Kylo being a –”

“Being a what?” She hears a deep voice from behind her and freezes up.

Spinning around, she sees Kylo carrying his bag in one hand, with the other stuffed in his pocket. She mimics the fake smile that he gave her, and finishes without hesitation, “Being a great instructor, that’s all.”

He shoots a look between the both of them, and Rose just sips her drink quietly, avoiding eye contact. Rey knows that the rest of the group has noticed that something is up, so to make it even more obvious, she pats him firmly on his upper arm and smiles broadly.

“I had a great lesson, today, thank you, Kylo, really.” She directs at him, then looks to Poe. “And thank you, Poe.”

Poe looks at everyone else, then back at Rey. “Well, no problem. I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

Kylo glances down at the spot where Rey’s hand is on his arm, and Rey quickly removes it. Why is she suddenly thinking about how muscular he is?

“Yeah, really great,” Kylo says apathetically. Without saying another word, he hands Poe the bag and heads off.

The silence is intolerable, so she asks, “So, we’re having drinks, are we?”  



End file.
